Council - Wednesday 5 March 2008

Present at the meeting

The Mayor (Councillor J D O’Brien)
The Deputy Mayor (Councillor R Winkworth)
Councillor K Aldred
Councillor M Aldred
Councillor N Ash
Councillor K Anderson
Councillor J B Baldwin
Councillor Mrs A Bennett
Councillor Mrs J Beswick
Councillor Mrs J S Birch
Councillor R M Bleakley
Councillor B Bowen
Councillor N A Bradbury
Councillor G M Bretherton
Councillor H L Cadman
Councillor W Carney
Councillor R Clayton
Doctor Councillor C M Cottam
Councillor Mrs P Cullen
Councillor K Cunliffe
Councillor G Davies
Councillor R J Derricutt
Councillor J Eccles-Churton
Councillor B J Fagan
Councillor G W Fairhurst
Councillor I A Franzen
Councillor P R Franzen
Councillor T W Halliwell
Councillor J Hilton
Councillor J D Hodgkinson
Councillor E N Houlton
Councillor Mrs J Hurst
Councillor M Klieve
Councillor Mrs S Loudon
Councillor B Merry
Councillor J Miller
Councillor D T Molyneux
Councillor J Moodie
Councillor J A O’Neill
Councillor Mrs J Prescott
Councillor P Prescott
Councillor C Rigby
Councillor W Rotherham
Councillor Mrs E Smethurst
Councillor P R C Smith
Councillor C Sweeney
Councillor J Talbot
Councillor P Thompson
Councillor Mrs A Turnock
Councillor P A Tushingham
Councillor F B Walker
Councillor Mrs M J Whiteside
Councillor N R Whittingham
Councillor B M Wilson
Councillor M W Winstanley

91 Apologies for Absence: Councillors A M L Bland M Baines, S C Barnes, Mrs B Bourne, M A Dewhurst, Mrs S Dewhurst, Ms L E Fagan, Mrs D Fairhurst , G A Fairhurst, J Haley, Ms P L Holland, Mrs B Jarvis, K W McManus, Mrs J M Peet, C Ready, A Robinson, R T Splaine, G Wilkes and W J Wilkes.

92 Death of Honorary Alderman William Pendleton: The Mayor referred to the death on 28 February 2008 of Honorary Alderman William Pendleton.

Bill Pendleton was a Member of Wigan County Borough from 1971 and was elected to Ward 1 of Wigan MBC in 1974 following reorganisation. He later represented the Whelley Ward until 2002. Bill served on the Highways and Works, Housing, Planning and Development and Social Services Committees and was Vice Chairman of the Highways and Works Committee from 1980 until 1996.

In 2000, he became a Member of the Development Control Committee (formally Planning and Development Committee) and also served on the Environment Panel. Bill Pendleton was a valued Member of the Douglas Valley Joint Committee since 1988 and was a Member of the Committee briefly in 1984. He was a governor at Aspull St. John the Baptist, Wigan St. Stephens and a member of the Management Committee for Douglas Valley Nursery.

Bill Pendleton was made a Honorary Alderman in April 2003 in the recognition of his valuable service to the Council and to the community at large.

Bill married to former Honorary Alderman Mrs Maria Pendleton who passed away in August 2002. He leaves a son David, daughter Elaine and grandchildren.

The Mayor extended to the family of Honorary Alderman Pendleton the Council’s deepest sympathy.

Members of the Council expressed their condolences in respect of the death of Honorary Alderman Pendleton and all those present stood for a few moments as a mark of respect.

93 Order of business: It was moved by Councillor P R C Smith and seconded by Councillor J A O’Neill:-

In accordance with rules of procedure 10c of the constitution, the order of business is amended so that the following items can be considered as one item:-

Policy and budget framework: - (a) Capital strategy;

(b) Capital Programme 2008/09 to 2010/11 and the prudential code for capital finance in Local Authorities;

(d) Revenue estimates, collection fund estimates and council tax calculations 2007/08, medium term financial plan 2007/08 - 2009/10.

On the motion being put to the vote, the Mayor declared it carried and it was

Resolved: In accordance with rules of procedure 10c of the constitution, the order of business is amended so that the following items can be considered as one item:-

Policy and budget framework: - (a) Capital strategy;

(b) Capital Programme 2008/09 to 2010/11 and the prudential code for capital finance in Local Authorities;

(d) Revenue estimates, collection fund estimates and council tax calculations 2007/08, medium term financial plan 2007/08 - 2009/10.

(Councillor P R Franzen requested that his vote against this decision be recorded).

94 Suspension of rules of debate 11.4: It was moved by Councillor P R C Smith and seconded by Councillor J A O’Neill:-

Rules of debate 11.4 of the Constitution are suspended to permit a Member to speak for 15 minutes when proposing a motion, 10 minutes when seconding a motion, 10 minutes for opposition leaders or their representatives to respond to a motion, 5 minutes for any other member to respond to a motion and 10 minutes when replying to a debate on a motion he/she has proposed or proposing an amendment, when considering the following items:-

Policy and budget framework: - (a) Capital strategy;

(b) Capital Programme 2008/09 to 2010/11 and the prudential code for capital finance in Local Authorities;

(d) Revenue estimates, collection fund estimates and council tax calculations 2007/08, medium term financial plan 2007/08 - 2009/10.

On the motion being put to the vote, the Mayor declared it carried and it was.

Resolved: Rules of debate 11.4 of the Constitution are suspended to permit a Member to speak for 15 minutes when proposing a motion, 10 minutes when seconding a motion, 10 minutes for opposition leaders or their representatives to respond to a motion, 5 minutes for any other member to respond to a motion and 10 minutes when replying to a debate on a motion he/she has proposed or proposing an amendment when considering the following items:-

Policy and budget framework:- (a) Capital strategy;

(b) Capital Programme 2008/09 to 2010/11 and the prudential code for capital finance in Local Authorities;

(d) Revenue estimates, collection fund estimates and council tax calculations 2007/08, medium term financial plan 2007/08 - 2009/10.

(Councillor PR Franzen requested that his vote against this decision be recorded).

95 Policy and budget framework: (a) Capital strategy: The Council considered a report and the decision of the Cabinet thereon as set out in minute 11 of a joint meeting held with the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 25 February 2008. Both the report and the minutes of the joint meeting had been circulated to all Members of the Council. In particular, the Council noted that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee had considered the Cabinet’s proposals at the joint meeting and had accepted them.

Resolved: The Council approves the proposals set out in the report now submitted as part of the budget framework.

(Councillors B J Fagan, F B Walker, Mrs M J Whiteside and M W Winstanley declared a personal and non prejudicial interest in this item because they are members of Wigan and Leigh Housing appointed by the Council. Councillor P Thompson declared a personal and non prejudicial interest in this item because his company had submitted a tender in relation to the Sandyforth Farm site).

(b) Capital Programme 2008/09 to 2010/11 and the prudential code for capital finance in Local Authorities: The Council considered a report and the decision of the Cabinet thereon as set out in minute 13 of a joint meeting held with the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 25 February 2008. Both the report and the minutes of the joint meeting had been circulated to all Members of the Council. In particular, the Council noted that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee had considered the Cabinet’s proposals at the joint meeting and had accepted them.

Resolved: (1) The estimated capital expenditure in the three years 2008/09 to 2010/11 is determined at £110,921,300, £90,497,300 and £71,748,500 respectively.

(2) The estimated capital financing requirement for the three years 2008/09 to 2010/11 is determined at £418,433,000, £410,932,000 and £406,735,000 on 31 March of each respective year.

(3) The estimated ratios of capital financing costs to net revenue streams is set for the three years 2008/09 to 2010/11 at 8.30%, 7.74% and 7.34% for the respective years for non-Housing Revenue Account services and at 23.32%, 22.34% and 27.65% for the respective years for the Housing Revenue Account.

(4) The Council notes that the proposed capital expenditure programme will have the estimated year on year incremental impact on Council Tax for the three years 2008/09 to 2010/11 of £28.72, £24.87 and £19.90 respectively and that the proposed expenditure and its financing is estimated to have no incremental impact on rent levels.

(5) The external debt is limited by setting the following parameters for the three years 2008/09 to 2010/11:-

(i) An operational boundary of £376,629,000, £369,898,000 and £375,345,000 respectively;

(ii) An authorised limit of £395,500,000, £388,400,000 and £394,100,000 respectively;

(iii) A fixed rate exposure limit of £376,629,000, £369,898,000 and £375,345,000 respectively; and

(iv) A variable rate exposure limit of £10,000,000 each year.

(6) The Council will continue with its policy to borrow only at fixed rates of interest.

(7) The Council determines the following maturity structure for new borrowing in 2008/09:-

	Lower limit	Upper limit
	%	%
10 Years and above	50	100
5 years and within 10 years	0	50
24 months and within 5 years	0	50
12 months and within 24 months	0	0
Under 12 months	0	0

(8) The Council will not invest for periods of longer than 364 days.

(c) Housing revenue account capital and revenue estimates 2008/09: The Council considered a report and the decision of the Cabinet thereon as set out in minute 14 of a joint meeting held with the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 25 February 2008. Both the report and the minutes of the joint meeting had been circulated to all Members of the Council. In particular, the Council noted that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee had considered the Cabinet’s proposals at the joint meeting and had accepted them.

Resolved: The Council:-

approves the Housing Revenue Account revenue estimates for 2008/09;
approves the Housing Revenue Account capital estimates for 2008/09;
approves the ALMO management fee for 2008/09 as £15,332,418 and incorporates it into the budget framework;
confirms the use of £250,000 of capital allowance to fund regeneration work such as conversions to bring properties back into use or assist with those aspects of the contaminated land remediation project at Ince which are ineligible for DEFRA funding;
confirms the use of capital receipts from disposal of cleared sites to fund any demolition costs;
grants budget release for the 2008/09 HRA capital programme;
appoints Wigan and Leigh Housing to manage the HRA capital programme and the Ince contamination remediation programme;
delegates to Wigan and Leigh Housing the power to manage the timing of the elements of the programme to match the available resources; and
delegates to Wigan and Leigh Housing the choice of minor programmes in the light of resources available when the 2007/08 out-turn is known.

(d) Revenue estimates, collection fund estimates and council tax calculations 2008/09, medium term financial plan 2008/09 - 2010/11: The Council considered a report (including a budget summary) and the decision of the Cabinet thereon as set out in Minute 15 of a joint meeting held with the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 25 February 2008. Both the report and the minutes of the joint meeting had been circulated to all Members of the Council. In particular, the Council noted that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee had considered the Cabinet’s proposals at the joint meeting and had accepted them.

During the debate, Councillor P R C Smith moved the following procedural motion, which was seconded:-

This Council does not permit Members to use personal electronic equipment in the chamber.

The Mayor advised Councillor P R C Smith that Members were required to vote first to suspend standing orders before the procedural motion could be considered.

During the debate, the Mayor moved the following further procedural motion, which was seconded:-

This Council agrees that Councillor P R Franzen is not heard further for the remainder of the meeting in accordance with Rule of Procedure 18.3.

On the further procedural motion being put to the vote the Mayor declared it carried and it was

Resolved: This Council agrees that Councillor P R Franzen is not heard further for the remainder of the meeting in accordance with Rule of Procedure 18.3.

(Councillor P R Franzen requested that his vote against the procedural motion be recorded).

Subsequently Councillor P R C Smith withdrew his procedural motion.

On the original Motion being put to the vote, the Mayor declared it carried and it was

Resolved: (1) The Council hereby approves the Revenue Estimates in accordance with the summary now submitted for the year 2008/09 (Appendix 'A').

(2) The Council notes that, under delegated authority, the Director of Finance and Information Technology has calculated the following amounts for the year 2008/09 in accordance with regulation 3 of the Local Authorities (Calculation of Tax Base) Regulations 1992 made under Section 33 (5) of the Local Government Finance Act 1992:-

(a) 95,753 being the amount calculated by the Council, in accordance with regulation 3 of the Local Authorities (Calculation of Council Tax Base) Regulations 1992, as its Council Tax base for the year.

(b) Part of the Council's area

Parish of Shevington 3,300
Parish of Haigh 288

being the amounts calculated by the Council, in accordance with regulation 6 of the Regulations, as the amounts of its Council Tax base for the year for those dwellings in those areas to which one or more special items relate.

(3) The following amounts are now calculated by the Council for the year 2008/09 in accordance with Sections 32 to 36 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992:-

(a) £757,934,856 being the aggregate of the amounts which the Council estimates for the items set out in Section 32 (2) (a) to (e) of the Act (Appendix 'B')

(b) £524,734,701 being the aggregate of the amounts which the Council estimates for the items set out in Section 32 (3) (a) to (c) of the Act (Appendix 'B')

(c) £233,200,155 being the amount by which the aggregate at 3 (a) above exceeds the aggregate at 3 (b) above, calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 32 (4) of the Act, being its budget requirement for the year (Appendix 'B')

(d) £124,488,947 being the aggregate of the sums which the Council estimates will be payable for the year into its General Fund in respect of redistributed non-domestic rates and revenue support grant. (Appendix ‘A’)

(e) £1,135.33 being the amount at 3 (c) above less the amount at 3 (d) above, all divided by the amount at 2(a) above, calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 33 (1) of the Act, as the basic amount of its Council Tax for the year (Appendix 'C').

(f) £75,600 being the aggregate of all special items referred to Section 34 (1) of the Act (see Appendix 'A')

(g) £1,134.54 being the amount at 3(e) above less the result given by dividing the amount at 3(f) above by the amount at 2(a) above, calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 34 (2) of the Act, as the basic amount of Council Tax for the year for dwellings in those parts of its area to which no special item relates (see Appendix 'C')

(h) Part of the Council's area

Parish of Shevington £1,156.35
Parish of Haigh £1,147.04

being the amounts given by adding to the amount at 3 (g) above the amounts of the special items relating to dwellings in those parts of the Council's area mentioned above divided in each case by the amount at 2 (b) above, calculated by the Council in accordance with Section 34 (3) of the Act, as the basic amounts of its Council Tax for the year for dwellings in those parts of the area to which one or more special items relates.

(i) Valuation Bands

Valuation Band	Parish of Shevington	Parish of Haigh	All other parts of the Council's area
	£ p.	£ p.	£ p.
A	770.90	764.69	756.36
B	899.38	892.14	882.42
C	1,027.86	1,019.59	1,008.48
D	1,156.35	1,147.04	1,134.54
E	1,413.31	1,401.93	1,386.66
F	1,670.28	1,656.83	1,638.78
G	1,927.25	1,911.73	1,890.90
H	2,312.70	2,294.08	2,269.08

being the amounts given by multiplying the amounts at 3(g) and 3(h) above by the number which, in the proportion set out in Section 5(1) of the Act, is applicable to dwellings listed in a particular valuation band divided by the number which in that proportion is applicable to dwellings listed in valuation band D, calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 36(1) of the Act, as the amounts to be taken into account for the year in respect of categories of dwellings listed in different valuation bands.

(4) It is noted for the year 2008/09 the Greater Manchester Police Authority and the Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Authority have stated the following amounts in precepts issued to the Council, in accordance with Section 40 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, for each of the categories of dwellings shown below:-

Valuation Bands	Greater Manchester Police Authority	Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Authority
	£ p.	£ p.
A	83.27	33.12
B	97.14	38.64
C	111.02	44.16
D	124.90	49.68
E	152.66	60.72
F	180.41	71.76
G	208.17	82.80
H	249.80	99.36

(5) Having calculated the aggregate in each case of the amounts at 3(i) above and 4 above, the Council, in accordance with Section 30 (2) of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, sets the following amounts of Council Tax for the year 2008/09 for each of the categories of dwellings shown below:-

Valuation Bands	Parish of Shevington	Parish of Haigh	All other parts of the Council's area
	£ p.	£ p.	£ p.
A	887.29	881.08	872.75
B	1,035.16	1,027.92	1,018.20
C	1,183.04	1,174.77	1,163.66
D	1,330.93	1,321.62	1,309.12
E	1,626.69	1,615.31	1,600.04
F	1,922.45	1,909.00	1,890.95
G	2,218.22	2,202.70	2,181.87
H	2,661.86	2,643.24	2,618.24

(6) That the Revenue Estimates, Collection Fund Estimates and Council Tax Calculations for 2008/09 as now submitted be approved and incorporated into the Budget Framework.

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March 2008

Council - Wednesday 5 March 2008

Present at the meeting

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